two and a half

Today is the day my sweet boy is officially two and a half! Can't believe and hate that I use this cliche so much , but its true. Here is a run down of our G-man's personality at two and a half.....

He is in love with puzzles right now. I am in love with that fact, myself. I used to bury myself in a puzzle for a couple days when growing up. I probably pressed it on him by buying, ohhh 5-6 different puzzles for him for Christmas. Anyway, he can do them mostly by himself. His strategy is connecting the individual pictures together and then combines them into the big picture.

Books are also a favorite. He loves to be read to but also loves to read himself. He highlights the story of each page and when you ask if he wants you to read the book to him, he quickly states, "No, I read it". Actually, he can read a lot of words like: dog, Momma, imagination, all the colors and shapes, everyone in our family's names, lots of animals, and so on. My teacher-friends say it is "sight" words, but I just think its pretty neat!

Garyn still loves to dance, he gets to groovin' with any type of music. Here is him dancing to Wii guitar hero.......

Garyn is a Wii fanatic!! It is truly sad how much he thinks about it. Most days, he wakes up saying, "Eat a waffle, sausage, egg and play Wii games" and when you say "That's what you want to do?" He quickly says, "Yeah, Ok, I want to, Lets go!" Cracks me up! Waffles/Pancakes are another fav by-the-way & he doesn't get it every morning. We use his Wii fascination as a bribe often, such as " No Wii games if you don't eat your carrots." The worst, though, is that he knows stores with Wii games, ex. Old Navy, Best Buy, Target, Game Stop..., yeah, I know, its sickening, but if we go by those stores without distracting him somehow, he cries, so much that we avoid those areas when possible. He just wants to watch us play most of the time, but is able to play a few games.

Potty training is in full swing. He is doing pretty good. He pees, sorry for the graphics, on average 4 times a day in his potty. Probably like most boys, he is very stubborn. I am seeing how stubborn/ impatient I am, as well. We are getting through it though, with lots of suckers and Wii bribes! Although, he is now telling me "Go pee-pee in the potty and get a sucker" and then he goes! I am happy to see progress!

Garyn is talking a lot now, too. He can carry on a conversation with you easily. He still talks in third person, or repeats things exactly the way you say it. For instance, " Are you hungry?" means "I'm hungry"...... he does say "I" for some phrases. Lately, he has been saying "please, thank you, I'm sorry, and Yes mam/sir", not sure how he has caught on so well, but I like it!

Oh, Garyn, we just can't describe how much we love you and the happiness you bring to our days. We hope you keep your bubbly personality and drive to do what you want. With that we also pray that God is a focus in your life. Know that we will always support and love you!

Snow Day

We don't get much snow here therefore each year I have taken pictures of Garyn playing out in the snow. However this year, we have had 2 days that it snowed. The first didn't warrant school being called off ,though, so today is the official "snow day" since Tyler is home from school!

Living in the Chattanooga area and North Georgia my whole life, I can remember being a kid that always hoped for snow so that I could be out of school. I actually lived in Dayton, TN during the '93 blizzard. I have fond, vivid memories of those many snow days that I was out of school. And believe me, I have a horrible memory!! Some of the best ones are: 1. We lived maybe 3-4 blocks from Red Food or now Bi-Lo and my dad put me on a sled, pulled me to the store, bought groceries, then pulled me and the groceries home. I loved that! I guess because I felt like I was doing something that Northern people who lived in constant snow did. That was my 10-year-old thinking, at least. 2. I remember eating snow cream and actually saving some for my brother (who lived an hour and a half away) in the freezer! Don't think he ever got that snow cream....hmmm, wonder why...anyway 3. We were out of power for a long time (not sure how long) and we had some friends here in Chattanooga that had a gas stove and great fireplace. Dad packed us up and we drove in all the ice and snow and it took ua twice as long. Then we ate a cooked meal and slept on pallets in their living room in front of the fire! Great times! Can't wait to make memories with Garyn on our once-twice a year snow days!

Now back to our 2010 snow day!

Here is Garyn and us outside...........

This is Garyn's new battery powered scrambler (from Bob the Builder) that we finally got a battery for! He seems to really like it but can't steer it yet, keeps running into things and then laughs, maybe its intentional........

Now off to decide whats for dinner.....I am doing pretty good at my monthly goals!

Resolutions and Goals

Lately I have been thinking about goals and resolutions.....aren't we all , given the time of year!
But really, our New Year's Eve party requires that we make a Bucket List and resolutions, and each year, we will review what we did. Well, last year I hand wrote a small list; came to the party and everyone else had typed and extensive lists. I should have know given our company of overachievers/teachers! However, this time when they all pulled theirs out and were able to actually check goals off, I was jealous! I have no clue where my 2008/2009 handwritten list is and now want to jot down my resolutions so that next year I can cross things off!!

So while reading this, I decided to combine the two into a blog. I will definitely have it typed and can maybe accomplish more!

{note: this will be a longer list, just didn't want to bore everyone}
Resolutions and Bucket List:
1. Be more intentional with my walk with God, including being confident that I am here for a reason and shouldn't shy away from gifts He has given me.
2. Spend more time with family
3. Cook healthier and more often; those of you that know us know that we eat out a lot
4. Spend less time doing mindless things, such as TV and Internet surfing
5. Carrying on with #4: spending more time with Garyn playing and teaching him things. (As you all know, 2 is such a great time to absorb a lot)
6. Go somewhere different for vacation in order to see different things
7. Go on a ski trip, may tie in with #6 or may be in 2011
8. Organize the junk of our house!! Stop looking at it and either store it or give it away!
9. Budget, budget, budget! Every year we try to set out a monthly budget & it never sticks, this year I think I am going to go the "save" route and intentionally spend less so that we can put money in savings each month which would be used on items 6 & 7! :)
10. Be more patient! I don't show it all the time, but I am losing my patience a lot lately and it makes me a bad wife and mother. I start stewing about little things that aren't happening fast enough or going the way I planned and then I eventually take it out on one of them.

So for January:

Fun:
Do something with some friends or family that we don't normal see much, i.e. game night or dinner out
Plan more girls luncheons for Sunday school
Be better about dates with Tyler, just the two of us, we tend to just bring Garyn so that we don't have to worry about a babysitter

DIY/Crafting:
Start scrap booking again, I am so behind & there is a monthly group at church that I think I am going to start going to!
Paint Garyn's calender set he made at Home Depot with him, will tell more about this later

Home:
Finish taking down Christmas decorations, been procrastinating, I know
Paint bedroom
Paint/stain kitchen cabinet door (left over from this)
Clean-up basement, in some way, not trying to overwhelm myself here

Cooking:
cook a meal at least 3x a week
do a freezer day

Wellness:
do something fitness-ish at least once a week, i.e. Wii Fit, stationary bike; gotta start somewhere

I feel motivated and good about being able to accomplish this list!

Christmas and New Years

Well, I didn't get a blog in before Christmas, cause it got a little busy the week before and of Christmas. Sickness is something we have been learning to get used to around here with a 2 year old. After we all 3 had just gotten over the stomach bug, Garyn got a cold/cough that was getting worse and then spiked a fever. Long story short, he began coughing so much he was wheezing and fever so high he was lethargic. He has now been diagnosed with asthma that harbored some pneumonia in his lower lungs. Now, he takes a breathing treatment daily, but when he was wheezing it was every 4 hours! I was sleeping with him in the rocking chair half the night. Christmas Eve was the first day the wheezing had stopped and he seemed to feel better. However, the meds were making him act so different and irritable about everything. As of today, the cough is minimal and we are still taking an antibiotic for congestion left in his chest. Gives you more to be thankful for definitely! I felt blessed for Christmas and the Eve to be somewhat back to normal.

So here is Garyn and Santa......he did much better this year! Last year he was screaming in the pic. This year he was able to be coerced some, but wouldn't sit in his lap.
Christmas Eve we went to our church service and then to Tyler's parents house.
Garyn got some fun toys, but the best was two swords. Oh my, we were all getting attacked while sitting in the floor trying to unwrap our presents. It was hilarious.

Christmas morning we started some new traditions. Tyler and I both want to make sure Christmas remains a celebration for Jesus' birth and so we held back on excessively buying for Garyn. We also made a Banana Nut Bread "cake", put a candle in it, and sang "Happy Birthday Jesus". We enjoyed our morning together. Garyn got a tool bench and a ride on 4 wheeler that the battery was bad in. We felt so bad that we didn't realize this prior to Christmas Eve and therefore he wasn't able to ride it! :( However, he hasn't noticed and got plenty...

I got a purple laptop!! I was so excited. I am writing this blog on it right now!
Afterwards, we went to my grandparents in Georgia and then Tyler's grandparents in Bakewell, TN. So we were driving some but I can't imagine Christmas without seeing all my family. I, obviously, didn't document these trips. The day after Christmas, my brother and family came up to celebrate Christmas, with them and my dad. Garyn loves having them at our house and it was an extended time to see everyone.

New Year's eve we went to the Cobble's house. I just loved this pic of the boys eating together. There were 4 boys total, from 21 mos to 4 1/2. They all get together and play well. We adults had fun, too, playing games, watching football and making new resolutions for 2010!
Back to a normal schedule now with Tyler returning to work tomorrow. Can't believe its already over.....:(

Early Christmas

We got our first Christmas present (and most likely, our best) early from Tyler's parents. I have been so excited about it and couldn't wait to tell you about it!

I love updating houses, our first was a fixer-upper and when we came to our current house it wasn't as much so but still needed some cosmetic work. However, I hate the long process! I wish I could do every individual project within a weekend, but it doesn't always happen that way and when it drags out.....I get frustrated and overwhelmed. I was anxious about the upcoming update.......

When we first moved into our house our kitchen looked pretty dated, wouldn't you say??........

The cabinets were in good shape but the wood was not working. Not to mention the top piece that closed it all in. The counters were new and a good neutral color. Stove was ooold and worked half the time. AND the floor was terrible, terrible!

So we got some new appliances and did a faux paint job on the cabinets & after taking the top piece off (sorry I do not know what this is called) and changing the hardware this is what it looked like.....

Better but those floors looked yellower, in person, up against the new cabinets.

Our plans for those floors were new hardwood but we couldn't find any pre-finished to match our hardwoods throughout the house. The price to stain and finish hardwood to match was just about double so we were going to have to save up. But leave it to those in-laws that love to get you what-you-need rather than clothes you don't like or gift cards. For Christmas we got hardwood floors in our kitchen to match our house!

Here is Garyn helping daddy & Poppa lay the unfinished floors...........

Now here is the stressful part, the floors were laid on the weekend and then refinished on the following Fri, Sat, and Sunday. We couldn't walk on it once refinishing started and had everything out in Garyn's playroom from Thursday until Tuesday. The smell kept us out of the entire house, though! Yeah, the smell of the staining & polyurethane that weekend kicked us out. But Oh My how it was worth it all!!! They are just beautiful!! {And here is the plastic that kept us, i.e. Garyn and Gus (cat), out........}

Total view......

WOW! I just love it!! I can't get used to it yet! It just makes the cabinets and appliances pop....ooohhh I am so happy. Go up and look at that first pic and compare......isn't it amazing the difference! Sorry I am biased, but I hadn't realized since it was a slow change, but man it has made a difference. I also noticed the lighting is different which is the work of my own handy man, Tyler, who put 4 (oh what are they called??) round spot lights in the ceiling. You would think I would have more of the lingo down, but its just my poor memory!

Here are some pics from Garyn's snow day of the year! I looked back through pics and realized it has snowed just one time each year since his birth, so this may have been his only chance to play in it. He really wasn't fond of it. He actually told me one day this week out of the blue, "Mommy, I don't like it snow." We were not talking about snow or looking at these pics, he just randomly said that.

I hope to get another blog in before Christmas, but in case I don't.....Merry Christmas!!

Birthdays and dreams come true!

Tyler and I have birthday's one month apart, 10-12 and 11-12, born in the same year. I always thought that was neat. We celebrated both with dinner out on our own and then dinner with his family. These are pics of Tyler's birthday dinner...

I didn't get any pics at my birthday dinner, but it would have looked much the same! We both enjoyed our days and still can't believe we are 26.

So I made a little dream of mine come true today. I made some extra dinners to freeze and hope to do a couple more tomorrow while getting things ready for Thanksgiving.

Here are pics from today, I made my favorite casserole, Mexican Chicken. I love that it is: good, has veggies, and everyone likes it in the family!! I often give it as a new-mommy dinner for friends that don't have time to cook while caring for their new baby.


Here are all the cans of veggies and beans that I strain.....

Then I add cheese, sour cream, rice and salsa to the mix. After cooking chicken breasts (from my cheap chicken sale!), I shred/cut it and add it in. Then put it in a casserole dish, cook it and serve with chips, salsa, and/or sour cream. Occasionally, Tyler will roll it up in a tortilla.

Also, if you know Tyler, you know he is a picky eater. Well, he is making huge strides! Tonight, at the dinner table, he said "Honey, I need to apologize to you." I thought "ok wonder what this is about" but knowing Tyler wasn't alarmed since he typically begins a conversation this way.

He then said, "You're right, you can't taste the tomatoes." I looked at his plate and there was not a little pile of tomatoes like there normally is!

I made ours for tonight and these two extra. Felt pretty good about my start to freezing meals!

Sadly, we lost the game Friday. It was a good game, 13-14, our extra point got blocked in the last 40 secs of the game. It was a good season, though. Here is Garyn ringing some bells, it was pretty cute!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

Full Recipe for Chicken Mexican Casserole...

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 can rotel

1 can black beans

optional can of corn

1 cup minute rice

3 cooked/shredded chicken breasts (sometime I boil, sometimes I microwave)

2 cups cheese (can add more if like it cheesy)

8-12 oz of sour cream

8-12 oz salsa (can spice it up more if desired)

wash and drain all the canned items

mix everything else in with veggies

cook in a dish for 30-45 minutes on 375 covered with aluminum foil

then take off foil and cook another 10-15

serve with tortilla chips, salsa, and/or sour cream

(note: variation in time depends on how much you strain everything, you don't want it soupy, so may need to cook longer. Also, we can not ever eat a whole one, so I typically divide it into two smaller dishes and freeze or give-away one)

Halloween

Due to my procrastination and the lack of computer/internet access at my house lately, I have been unable to blog like I want, but here is some pics of our life lately...

Play-by-play of Halloween...

Daddy trying to gear Garyn up for his costume, note this is the 2nd costume we bought; Garyn is afraid of a lot of things right now and Halloween worsened it all!

Garyn saying "No Dinosaur, Mama!"

Me saying "Its ok, Garyn"

Garyn now saying, "You're so silly, mama" (me and about 5 other adults are being goofy so that he would laugh)

Yea!! Dino Garyn! I think at this point he was too worried about everyone's costumes and scary decorations to worry about his own. His new phrase is "Its ok mama, don't be scared" which actually means "I am scared"

We had a good Halloween, I, obviously, was worried when he wouldn't put on his first costume, a Lion, nor his 2nd. But once it was on, he did great all night!


This is him dancing in my new cowboy boots that were only $2 at a yard sale!!! Meg found them for me! Thanks Meg

Red Bank is in the 3rd Round of Playoffs tonight!! 12-0 so far!

(my camera is funky right now! wish these weren't blurry)

Hope you all have a good Thanksgiving!!!